Rich Learning

The last couple of weeks have seen our students and staff engaging a number of enriching experiences to support the teaching and learning that students are undertaking on a daily basis.  These rich and diverse events not only support student learning but also serve to broaden student experiences and provide students with an opportunity to engage with each other and build relationships.  Whilst all our experience activities and days have a rich curriculum foundation, they are also an amazing opportunity for students to be healthy, happy and curious, one of our key drivers at Walcom Ngarrwa.  A huge thank you is extended to the students, parents and staff who have actively supported recent events such as Book Week, Wear It Purple Day and our Ancient Worlds Immersion Day.

Communicating with Families

Communication is an essential for all of us as we work towards Building Bright Futures for the young people in our school community.  The importance of clear and timely communication can not be underestimated and it is with this in mind that as a school, we take the opportunity to communicate regularly with families.  This may include phone calls, face to face conversations and also the use of Compass to provide regular information about school and our students.

As a school we have deliberately made the decision to keep families informed about what occurs during the school day, when this deviates from the expected or the normal.  This means that from time to time, families will receive a notification about the behaviour of students.  This could be a staff member celebrating a student going above and beyond, with the acknowledgement of a Positive Impression, for we know recognising and reinforcing positive behaviours leads to more positive behaviours and attitudes being displayed.  It could also be a Compass notification letting parents know about a classroom or yard behaviour issue, aiming to ensure parents and carers are aware that their child may not be meeting the expectations of the learning environment and the school.  By working together around these things, we are more likely to experience success for the student and set them up for future success, rather than repeating the negative behaviours and starting a cycle of relationship break down, conflict and disengagement.

I would like to encourage all parents and carers to come and speak with us if you have a concern about anything that is happening at school.  There are many times that as parents you may be able to provide that additional piece of missing information that assists us to solve a problem, change a situation and support all students, including your own, to be and continue to be, healthy, happy and curious.  I ask that you please do not take to social media to air your concerns or problems, this only creates a tornado of concern and we all know how destructive a tornado can be.  Please come and speak with us and together we can work towards resolving any situation that you may be experiencing.

Laptop Care and responsibility

At Walcom Ngarrwa, each of our students has been provided with a laptop device to support their learning.  These devices serve as an essential learning tool and as such we felt it important that all students were provided with this device, rather than taking the hit and miss approach of adopting a Bring Your Own Device approach.  The approach we have taken allows all students to access the same platforms, the same resources and to have a resource that they can lean on to support their learning.

Unfortunately, during Term 3 we have seen a significant increase in the number of laptops being damaged.  We would like to remind all families that the devices are school owned and that families are responsible for the care of the device whilst it is issued to students.  In the event that laptops are damaged, the school will be contacting parents/carers to inform them of the damage and the costs involved for the repair/replacement of the device when this damage is either deliberate, malicious or is the second or subsequent time, accidental damage has occurred.  Once families have covered the costs of the damage, the device will be repaired quickly and returned to students.

Students are required to store the device in the carry bag that was provided, as this helps protect the device, particularly from screen damage which can cost up to $400 to repair.

Catch Up Class

At Walcom Ngarrwa Secondary College we want to give every student the opportunity to experience success in their learning.  In an effort to support all students to put their best foot forward, we offer a Monday afternoon catch-up class, each Monday, between 3:00 and 4:00pm.

This is a great opportunity for students to finish off any incomplete work, finalise work and ensure it is submitted or improve classwork or assessment tasks that need further work.

Students can opt-in to these sessions.  Teachers will also advise parents in advance if students have been scheduled for one of these sessions.  Parents can check their child’s Compass Schedule for each Monday to see if their son or daughter is required to attend a catch up class.

Student accident insurance, ambulance cover arrangements and private property brought to school

The Department of Education does not provide personal accident insurance or ambulance cover for students. Parents/carers of students, who do not have student accident insurance/ambulance cover, are responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment for injured students, including the cost of ambulance attendance or transport as well as any other transport costs.

Parents/carers can purchase insurance policies from commercial insurers.

Private property brought to school by students, staff or visitors is not insured and the Department does not accept any responsibility for any loss or damage.

This can include mobile phones, calculators, toys, sporting equipment and cars parked on school premises. As the Department does not hold insurance for personal property brought to schools and has no capacity to pay for any loss or damage to such property, students and staff should be discouraged from bringing any unnecessary or particularly valuable items to school.

The Last Few Weeks of Term 3

We have a few weeks left in Term 3 and this is a great opportunity for students to show us what they are capable of before end of term Progress Reports, our Inspire Showcase and Student/Parent/Teacher Conferences at the start of Term 3.  Let’s work together to capture our students engagement and celebrate the amazing learning that they are all capable of and that so many demonstrate on a daily basis.

Please remember, that if you have any feedback, please do not hesitate in contacting me on 03 8000 6688 or via email at Walcom.Ngarrwa.SC@education.vic.gov.au

Wishing our school community a positive and vibrant end to Term 3.

Kind regards,

Brad Moyle

Principal

With end of year fast approaching there are a number of upcoming events that will be published to Compass.

We have attached an easy to use, user guide that gives you step by step instructions on how to consent to events and make payments.

Please click HERE to access the user guide. 

If you are having any issues with your compass or need help accessing your Compass, please contact our friendly team in the office

Last week was Science Week – this year’s theme was Species Survival: Not just sustainability. During the week students had the opportunity to participate in science trivia each day. The trivia scores were tallied, and we had two overall winners for the week Mae Trawn and Ashmin Singh, Well done to the both of you. Students also deviated from their regular science curriculum and participated in a practical analysing whale snot where they learnt about innovating technology to collect whale snot in the wild and monitor whales’ health.

On Wednesday the 21st of August, our student leadership team hosted and Active Travel initiative. We welcomed Jake from VICSRC, Dianne from Wyndham City Council and Di from the Department of Planning and Transport to the College to assist us in promoting Active Travel, aligned to our mission of healthy, happy and curious students. 

Students worked on three key initiatives they could employ to promote students' access to Active Travel within the Harpley community. We want to thank Jake, Dianne, and Di for their contribution and support of our programs at WNSC! 

On September 18th, 4:00 - 5:00pm the College is hosting a Silent Auction for the Inspire Upcycle Project. We invite all students, parents, and families to attend the evening.  

Walcom Ngarrwa Secondary College has established a host of lunchtime and extra-curricular offerings for our students to engage in collaborative, engaging and fun clubs and programs throughout the school day. The schedule of programs is attached, and we take this opportunity to prompt our parents and guardians to discuss these offerings with their children as a great avenue for our students to feel more connected and enjoy their day at school! 

This week there was a range of activities for Book Week including;

• Bookmark making competition
• Lunch time scavenger hunt
• Lunch time character bingo
• Book Fair

It has been a week filled with reading, creativity and joy!

Below are our winners for 2024!

Competition:
Bookmark competition winner: 

Paavani 7F – 

Entry titled:  Blue Flowers 

Prize: Book – The mystery of the forever weekend.  

Jellybean Guess winner:

Steve 7E – who guessed was 366 

Prize: Jar of jellybeans to take home.

Book Week Bingo winner:

Brayden 7F 

Prize: Giant Freddo Frog  


Costumes:

Most Creative -  Coordinators award:

Abby 7A

Prize: 1 book of choice from collection of 3 

Most Like Character winners: 

7A - Axton
7B - Kaiyah
7C - Kate
7D - Cooper
7E - Mahir
7F - Jakson
7G - Advika
7H - Diane

Final prize winner - Diane 7H

Prize: 1 book of choice from collection of 3 

Form Group Favourite winners:

7A - Axton
7B - Lacey
7C - Kate
7D - Cooper
7E - Maddie
7F - Gibson
7G - Lilian
7H - Kayla & Azayliah

Prize: Form Group Favorite Costume Certificate  

Best Dressed – Principal’s Award

Jakson 7F

Prize: 1 book of choice from collection of 3 

Congratulations to all of our winners and all those that participated. 

Book Week 2024

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Dear Parents and Carers,

In Term 4, 2024, families with a child enrolled in a government school from Prep to Year 12 in 2025 will receive the one-off $400 School Saving Bonus.

The $400 School Saving Bonus provides families with support for education-related costs, such as school activities and/or school uniforms and textbooks.

The School Saving Bonus is not available for full-fee international students, home schooled students, TAFE students and students attending kindergarten in 2025.   

Actions for parents and carers

Before 18 October 2024, the Department of Education is asking parents and carers to:

• Complete enrolment: If your child, or children are changing government school for Term 1 2025, or starting Prep or Year 7 in 2025. For more information, read about Enrolling in School. 
• Check your contact information: Ensure your email address and phone number is up to date with us. You can check this information by contacting us directly.

We need to ensure your contact information is up to date as the Department of Education will email you twice:

• in October, to verify your email address
• in November, with your $400 School Saving Bonus.

Please check your junk mail regularly to make sure you do not miss an important email.

To learn more about the School Saving Bonus, download the School Saving Bonus Information sheet for government school parents and carers or visit vic.gov.au/school-saving-bonus.

Road Safety

We continue to see a large number of families ignoring road rules out the front of the school, before and after school when dropping students off or picking them up, which is compromising the safety of our students and your children. 

Key road safety reminders:

• It is not appropriate to complete a 3 point turn out the front of the school during peak times, such as drop off and pick up.
• Cars should not stop on the road to allow their child to exit or enter the car – please ensure you use the parking bays only.
• Do not park across driveways or on the nature strip
• The speed limit on Frome Crescent and Sawyer Parade is 40km/h 
• Always watch for pedestrians who maybe crossing the road

Our school has plenty of off-street parking along our boundary, please consider meeting your child, or dropping them off, further away from the schools’ front entrance, this will only require a short walk for them and ensure a smooth flow of traffic for both families and the local community. As a school community we all need to work together to ensure the safety of our students before and after school.